Health Literacy Promotion Program among Pregnant Women with Anemia on Eating Behavior Taking Iron Supplement Tablets and Blood Concentration at Health Promotion Hospital Regional Health Promotion Center 1 Chiangmai

Abstract

            Anemia in pregnant women increases the risk of preterm birth, low birth weight, and postpartum hemorrhage. Health literacy is a crucial factor for pregnant women with anemia. This study was a quasi-experimental research aimed to investigating the effects of a health literacy promotion program for pregnant women with anemia at Health Promotion Hospital Regional Health Promotion Center 1 Chiangmai. This study selected a purposive sample of pregnant women aged 18 years and older, with hemoglobin levels below 11 gram per deciliter. The research was conducted between March and October 2024, divided into a control group and an experimental group, with 25 participants in each group. Experimental group received health literacy program underwent an 8-week. A questionnaire that was validated for content by three experts, with an Index of Item-Objective Congruence (IOC) value of 0.82 and a reliability coefficient (Cronbach's alpha) of 0.92. Descriptive statistics were used, frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation. For comparison of means, non-parametric analysis was conducted using the Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test and the Mann-Whitney U-test, as the data distribution was not normal.

            The results showed that the experimental group had an increase in mean health literacy, dietary behavior, medication adherence, and blood concentration after the intervention (p<.01). Comparing the two groups, the health literacy of the experimental group improved more than the control group (p<.05). However, dietary and medication behavior and blood concentration in the experimental group did not significantly difference between the control group. This health literacy promotion should be used to enhance their knowledge and serve as a guideline for addressing other issues in the future.